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 Contents vii

Level of Detail Provided...................................................................................... 72

Stakeholder Agreement....................................................................................... 74
Meeting the Dates................................................................................................. 75
Network Diagrams............................................................................................... 76
The Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT).............................. 78
Inputs...................................................................................................................... 80
Developing a Schedule................................................................................................ 86
Step 1. List Tasks................................................................................................... 86
Step 2. Create the WBS........................................................................................ 87
Step 3. Identify Milestones.................................................................................. 87
Step 4. Assign Responsible People..................................................................... 87
Step 5. Develop Network Diagrams................................................................... 87
Step 6. Estimate Task Effort................................................................................ 88
Step 7. Estimate Task Duration and Assign Dates.......................................... 88
Step 8. Review the Schedule................................................................................ 89
Step 9. Control the Schedule............................................................................... 89
Step-by-Step Schedule Development........................................................................ 90
Step 1. List Tasks................................................................................................... 90
Step 2. Create the WBS........................................................................................ 93
Step 3. Identify Milestones.................................................................................. 99
Step 4. Assign Responsible People................................................................... 100
Step 5. Develop Network Diagrams................................................................. 101
Step 6. Estimate Task Effort.............................................................................. 102
Step 7. Estimate Task Duration and Assign Dates........................................ 107
Step 8. Review the Schedule.............................................................................. 110
Step 9. Control the Schedule............................................................................. 110
Summary..................................................................................................................... 112

Chapter 5. Budget.......................................................................................... 113

Do You Need a Budget?............................................................................................ 113
Words of Caution About Attitudes Toward Procurement.................................. 114
Budgeting Methods.................................................................................................... 115
How to Create a Budget............................................................................................ 115
Step 1. Get Estimates.......................................................................................... 116
Step 2. Combine Estimates................................................................................ 116
Step 3. Add All Task Estimates......................................................................... 117
Step 4. Determine Contingency....................................................................... 118
Step 5. Present Budget....................................................................................... 118
Step-by-Step Budget Creation.................................................................................. 119
Cautions....................................................................................................................... 123
Summary..................................................................................................................... 124
viii Procurement Project Management Success

Chapter 6. Communications......................................................................... 125

Communication as the Failure Point...................................................................... 125
Expectations........................................................................................................ 126
Stakeholders........................................................................................................ 126
Leadership............................................................................................................ 127
Tracking and Reporting..................................................................................... 127
Conflict-Resolution Skills.................................................................................. 129
Communication Plan................................................................................................ 130
Team Communications..................................................................................... 130
Status Reports...................................................................................................... 131
Potential Suppliers (Vendors).......................................................................... 133
Frequency of Communication.......................................................................... 136
Best Forms of Communication........................................................................ 136
Change Control................................................................................................... 138
Summary..................................................................................................................... 141

Chapter 7. Risk............................................................................................... 143

Procurement Risk....................................................................................................... 144
Types of Risk............................................................................................................... 146
Procurement Risk Management Processes............................................................ 147
Risk Identification.............................................................................................. 148
How to Identify Risks........................................................................................ 148
Risk Analysis....................................................................................................... 153
Risk Probability and Impact............................................................................. 153
Step 1. Determine Each Risk’s Probability.............................................. 154
Step 2. Determine Each Risk’s Overall Impact....................................... 156
Response Planning............................................................................................. 158
Monitoring and Control.................................................................................... 162
Summary..................................................................................................................... 164

Chapter 8. Negotiations................................................................................. 165

Goals............................................................................................................................ 166
Information................................................................................................................. 166
Strategies...................................................................................................................... 168
Techniques.................................................................................................................. 171
Case Example 1 Dissection....................................................................................... 173
Case Example 1 Price Negotiation Dialogue......................................................... 179
Summary..................................................................................................................... 182
 Contents ix

Chapter 9. Signing the Contract and Closing the Procurement.................. 185

Draft Contract............................................................................................................ 185
Parts of a Contract.............................................................................................. 186
Reviews................................................................................................................. 187
Signatures............................................................................................................. 188
Executed Contract...................................................................................................... 191
Debrief Unsuccessful Suppliers................................................................................ 192
Lessons Learned......................................................................................................... 194
Summary..................................................................................................................... 195

Chapter 10. Contract Administration........................................................... 197

Is Contract Administration Your Job?................................................................... 197
Contract Administration Requirements................................................................. 199
Document Supplier Performance.................................................................... 200
Document Cost Savings..................................................................................... 206
Prepare Necessary Contract Amendments/Addendums.............................. 206
Monitor Contract Expiration Dates................................................................ 207
Terminate the Contract When Necessary...................................................... 207
Summary..................................................................................................................... 208

Chapter 11. Final Words................................................................................ 211

Communication......................................................................................................... 211
Know Your Commodity........................................................................................... 212
Know Your Business and Industry.......................................................................... 212
Project Management Software................................................................................. 213
Reference Books......................................................................................................... 215

Appendix A. List of Tables and Figures........................................................ 217

Appendix B. Examples of a Completed RFPS, Schedule, and Budget......... 221

Appendix C. RFP for Case Example 2: Janitorial Services........................... 241

Index............................................................................................................... 283
 FOREWORD

There are two methods of learning that I consider to be most powerful. One
of those methods is learning from our mistakes. The other is learning from an
expert who can show us the path to success. In my career as a procurement prac-
titioner and leader, I did both.
Very early in my procurement career, a supplier decided to discontinue
pursuing doing business with an employer of mine because I made a mistake and
pushed this supplier too hard in a scenario that was not conducive to strong-arm
negotiation tactics. It was an unpleasant experience, but an important lesson
learned.
A short time later, I participated in intensive training and was fortunate to
have great mentors who helped me to learn the professional procurement role
quite well, including, for example, the art of negotiating. From then on, by apply-
ing the principles and techniques learned during the training and the guidance
gained from my mentors, I was often able to set aggressive—seemingly impos-
sible—negotiation targets and, through diligent effort, persuade suppliers to
agree to the terms that I was seeking for my employers.
By getting into the habit of applying newly gained knowledge of what to do
and what not to do as soon as possible, I have greatly improved my retention of
knowledge and effectiveness. This practice has enabled me to rise up through the
procurement ranks of my employers and to achieve an amazing amount of suc-
cess in my career as a procurement practitioner and leader.
Since transitioning to my current role as president and chief procurement
officer of the Next Level Purchasing Association (NLPA), this trend of career
success has continued. Under my leadership, this relatively new organization has
experienced year-after-year explosive growth and attained international recogni-
tion as one of the procurement profession’s foremost authoritative bodies.
There are two common threads that I attribute to my success previously as
a professional procurement practitioner and leader and currently as the head of

xi
xii Procurement Project Management Success

the NLPA. The first is the knowledge I gained from intensive training and having
some great mentors in purchasing and supply management and utilizing project
management best practices. The second is quickly and effectively applying what
I learn on a daily basis.
In today’s evermore challenging business environment—particularly in
procurement—you cannot just “wing it” and expect to succeed. You must have
a multi-component plan. You must have structure. You have to know what your
tasks are, what your dependencies are, what your constraints are, what your risks
are, what your resources are, what your deadlines are, and more. Additionally, if
you want to become truly successful in procurement today, then project manage-
ment best practices must absolutely be a part of your arsenal.
For many—perhaps you—this evolving procurement environment with
accelerating complexity requiring the use of project management best practices
is new, uncharted territory and a bit scary. There is a lot that you need to know
and learn. I suspect that you like many other procurement professionals may
have been worrying about the thought of learning these applicable best practices
via the painful method—by making mistakes. Well, there is good news. It is in
the form of this new book entitled Procurement Project Management Success:
Achieving a Higher Level of Effectiveness by Diana Lindstrom.
As you will read in the About the Author section of this text, Diana Lindstrom
is an expert in both procurement and project management. Most importantly to
you, she is an expert in employing project management best practices in procure-
ment. She, like the great mentors I was fortunate enough to have, demonstrates
through her book the ability to explain to others the seemingly complex in a man-
ner that is easy to understand and apply. Diana is an expert in the truest sense of
the word and a great mentor.
This desk reference will give you an advantage. Instead of learning from
your mistakes, you can now learn what to do from an expert with years of highly
successful practical experience as well as what not to do using the guidance she
provides based on the lessons learned from various real projects. You can learn
how to manage your procurement projects perfectly without the need to “repair”
things done wrong. This customized-to-procurement application of project man-
agement best practices is the first proven framework on the market.
Procurement Project Management Success is a desk reference that gives you a
comprehensive approach for utilizing project management practices in your pro-
curement work. Step-by-step instructions guide you around the myriad pitfalls
and landmines that can lead to project-threatening, and potentially career-killing,
mistakes.
At the NLPA, we utilize our expertise and lessons learned to provide real-
world advice to procurement professionals like you to help you succeed. This
 Foreword xiii

unique guide by Diana Lindstrom embodies that same spirit of education. I wish
it had been available in the early days of my procurement career.
As you read this book, try to absorb every principle that Diana teaches. Take
a minute to realize that while you are learning how to succeed in the new procure-
ment world via the best method—learning from an expert—too many of your
peers will be learning the hard way. By applying the project management best
practices you are going to read about, you will be well-positioned for success in
your procurement career and beyond. I hope that this valuable book plays a sig-
nificant part in you becoming the next expert to show others the path to success.
Charles Dominick
President & Chief Procurement Officer
Next Level Purchasing Association
Lead Author of The Procurement Game Plan:
Winning Strategies and Techniques for Supply
Management Professionals
http://www.NextLevelPurchasing.com

xiii
 PREFACE

This book is a result of discussions with many supply management and supply
chain professionals about what they want to know and then use in their everyday
work. The overwhelming single point was “techniques commonly used in project
management.” While not everyone used the exact term “project management,”
the basic ideas of planning, scheduling, budgeting, tracking, and managing all
aspects of a procurement were mentioned often.
Why would anyone want to learn new techniques for doing work? Simply
put, to be more successful. Success can be defined in many different ways. Some
people look at success as the simple measurement of how much money they
can make each year. Other people measure success by how good they feel about
what they are doing. Yet others use a combination of measurements that include
money, feelings, free time, etc. Correctly using project management techniques
will positively impact all measurements of success.
Many books are written every year about project management. And many
books are written about procurement. The idea that is missing in these books is
the combination of both—procurement and project management. The intent of
this book is to relay information about the project management techniques and
tools that are applicable to most procurements.
Many books are written in hard-to-understand language or language that
uses very specialized terminology. While specialized terminology is necessary in
some instances, it makes learning more difficult. This how-to book uses language
that is easy to understand. We will examine theories as needed, but focus on
exactly what is needed to get the work done successfully. This book also focuses
on specific people and situations, including:
• Procurement professionals who want to incorporate project manage-
ment techniques
• Procurement managers/executives who want to provide their employ-
ees with new tools
xv
xvi Procurement Project Management Success

• Adult continuing education instructors of procurement courses

• College professors and instructors of purchasing, supply manage-
ment, and supply chain management who are interested in upgrading
the courses they teach with project management tools and techniques
• Students who are interested in a procurement career
• People who want to move from buying to procurement
• People who find themselves assigned to do a procurement with no
prior experience
• Accidental project managers who are suddenly thrown into a project
• Project managers who have never done a procurement or wish to
improve their skills in this area

Procurement professionals often find that they have a high hurdle to clear.
In many companies, other business units in the company will do almost anything
to avoid using a procurement professional in a purchasing effort. This comes
from a long history of inadequate communication and a lack of knowledge of
the specific needs of the business unit. Using project management techniques
changes all that. Project management techniques require good communications
with all stakeholders. Every person that the procurement touches is included as
a stakeholder—from the planning phase all the way through until the goods or
services are under contract. All of these stakeholders have input that matters to
the procurement.
Project management techniques require a schedule to be developed. During
development of the schedule, all stakeholders are consulted. This technique
assists the procurement professional in showing stakeholders exactly what needs
to be done for an ethical and legal procurement. The schedule also serves as the
basis for educating other people in the company about what is involved in mak-
ing a procurement and how long it takes. The project management technique of
developing a schedule makes communications stronger between procurement
and other business units. The schedule also helps keep the procurement pro-
fessional on track—meeting milestone deadlines and getting the procurement
completed on time.
Not all project management techniques are discussed in this book. Some
do not apply to procurements at all. Others would only apply to very complex
procurements. Taking the middle road—using the techniques that apply to the
majority of procurements—allows this book to focus on exactly how to apply the
techniques needed.
It is my hope that this book will provide the information needed by so many
procurement professionals to make their contributions even more valuable to
their organizations, add value to the current body of knowledge, and help all
those with procurement responsibilities to achieve a higher level of effectiveness
and success.
 ACKNOWLEGMENTS

As usual in most undertakings, there is a team of people behind the scenes. I want
to thank each and every person who has touched this project.
Charles Dominick served as my inspiration. Besides my boss at Qwest,
Charles was the only professional I knew who saw, and understood, the impor-
tance of incorporating project management tools into supply chain management.
Donna Johnson gave her generous support by reviewing the manuscript.
With many years of experience in supply chain management, Donna provided
wonderful ideas and suggestions.
Drew Gierman, my Publisher, Carolyn Lea, my Editor, and the entire pub-
lishing team at J. Ross Publishing provided support and expertise with a soft
hand.

xvii
 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Diana Lindstrom has more than 25 years of experience as an electrical engi-

neer and project manager working in electrical power and facilities manage-
ment, design, construction, and maintenance. As a former certified Project
Management Professional (PMP®), she managed projects ranging from small
designs in electrical system transmission substations to large construction proj-
ects in various industries.
She decided to take a break from this career to try something else for a while
that would enhance her current skill set and became a paralegal primarily drafting
and supporting litigation of contracts. Upon achieving her objective and having
gained considerable procurement experience writing specifications, using win-
win negotiating to obtain contract work, and actually performing simple to fairly
complex procurements previously as a project manager, Diana became interested
in developing a new career in supply management. She was interested in finding
a position that would give her the opportunity to apply most, if not all, of the
knowledge and skills she had acquired over the years.
Diana was hired by a major telecommunications company with the specific
intention of bringing her project management knowledge into the procurement
department. She held the position of strategic sourcing manager, which was fairly
broad in scope. In this role her average procurement was $100 million spend per
year. The largest was $250 million spend per year. Utilizing her legal training and
negotiations skills, along with her project management skills, she implemented
programs that saved the telecommunications company many millions of dollars
each year.
Following her career as an electrical engineer, project manager, parale-
gal, and supply management professional, Diana became a certified life coach
(CTACC) and founded Los Lobos Consulting, a firm specializing in executive
coaching. During this period she coached executives, corporate attorneys, project
managers, and both new and experienced procurement professionals. She also

xix
xx Procurement Project Management Success

developed and taught a project management course in an adult continuing edu-

cation program at the University of New Mexico, Los Alamos, when she worked
for Los Alamos National Laboratories.
After four years of honorable service in the United States Navy, Diana
earned her Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from San Diego State
University. She earned her Project Management Professional (PMP®) certification
from the Project Management Institute. She has been a member of the Project
Management Institute (PMI), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
(IEEE), and National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and continues to be a
member of the Institute of Supply Management (ISM). She is now semi-retired
and spends her time working with people who are searching for new ways to be
successful, as well as writing and speaking on various topics.
Free value-added materials available from
the Download Resource Center at www.jrosspub.com

At J. Ross Publishing we are committed to providing today’s professional with

practical, hands-on tools that enhance the learning experience and give readers
an opportunity to apply what they have learned. That is why we offer free ancil-
lary materials available for download on this book and all participating Web
Added Value™ publications. These online resources may include interactive ver-
sions of material that appears in the book or supplemental templates, worksheets,
models, plans, case studies, proposals, spreadsheets and assessment tools, among
other things. Whenever you see the WAV™ symbol in any of our publications
it means bonus materials accompany the book and are available from the Web
Added Value™ Download Resource Center at www.jrosspub.com.
Downloads available for Procurement Project Management Success: Achieving
a Higher Level of Effectiveness consist of an actual schedule and budget, a procure-
ment plan, and a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Case Example 2: Janitorial
Services from Chapter 3. These downloads may be used as templates for the user’s
procurements. Also included are step-by-step instructions for creating a Gantt
chart in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet for Mac.
Schedule Budget: The spreadsheet is a combined schedule and budget for
Case Example 2 that displays procurement team information, including direct
and indirect costs for each person; every WBS, task description, predecessor,
owner, role, start date, finish date, effort, duration, labor costs, and percent
complete; and the procurement milestones in bold for the entire row of each
milestone. This spreadsheet is the major tool to use to manage and communicate
any procurement. It can easily be used as a template to help create schedules and
budgets. Especially useful is easy access to the cell equations that are needed to
complete a budget.
Procurement Plan: The document is the actual procurement plan for Case
Example 2. Using the tools and techniques described in the chapters, this pro-
curement plan is a guide that may be used for completing a procurement. This
plan may be also be used in a presentation to management for obtaining approv-
als for the strategy and timing of a procurement. The plan includes the Statement
of Work (SOW), procurement milestones, goal of the procurement, success met-
rics for the procurement, preliminary cost estimate, preliminary estimated date
of completion, the members of the procurement team, assumptions about the
procurement, constraints to the procurement, milestone schedule and budget,
the communication plan, change control, and the risk management plan. This

xxi
xxii Procurement Project Management Success

document can easily be used as a template for any procurement to help create
procurement plans.
Request for Proposals: The document is the actual RFP for Case Example 2.
The RFP includes every major component needed to receive relevant proposals:
the invitation, table of contents, overview of the request, timeline and events, gen-
eral instructions for responding the request, proposal stipulations and require-
ments, insurance requirements, the proposal evaluation process, specialized
services to be performed, proposal reply page, proposal contents, signature page,
and attachments. The attachments include a sample contract, deviation form,
notice of non-participation form, how to access IRS Form W-9, and a contractor
sign-in log. Although the RFP is very specific for janitorial services, it can be used
for any type of procurement. The template can be used as a template for any RFP,
as well as to support a procurement team in uncovering the information needed
to provide an ethical, legal procurement.
A Gantt Chart in MS Excel for Mac: Step-by-step instructions describe how
to create a Gantt chart in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Several websites offer
similar instructions for creating a Gantt chart in MS Excel for Windows, but this
is the only instruction sheet currently available for MS Excel for Mac. Although
MS Excel is not the easiest tool to use to create a Gantt chart, its charting capabili-
ties can be finessed to produce an acceptable Gantt chart. This Gantt chart can
be used to communicate the baseline schedule when the procurement begins and
to update the schedule as the procurement progresses. Although the Gantt chart
created using these instructions is for the Case Example 2 schedule, the instruc-
tions can be used to create a Gantt chart for any procurement.
 chapter 1

FIRST THINGS FIRST

Procurements are purchases of materials, products, or services in a business

environment. This concept translates to everyday life as well. We all buy things.
Most of us buy services at some point in our lives. Let’s look at a case example
that is common for most people in the United States. We will watch a family that
shops for a car.

CASE EXAMPLE 1: SHOPPING FOR A CAR

Bill and Sheila needed to buy a vehicle for their sixteen-year-old daughter, Abby.
Their decision to buy a vehicle took quite some time—their daughter’s safety was
first in their minds. Now that the decision to buy the vehicle had been reached,
they started looking at different makes and models. The first requirement, safety,
ruled out several models. Abby would not be getting a Ford Mustang, a Dodge
Charger, a Chevrolet Corvette, or many other vehicles. Next they looked at body
styles—SUV, minivan, sedan, and pickup. They could not see a sixteen-year-old
girl driving a minivan or a SUV. That left a sedan or pickup. They did not need a
pickup because Bill already drove one. So a sedan it would be.
Doing their research online, Bill and Sheila started with a trusted site. This
site had reports on all types of vehicles. The reports included safety, reliability,
fuel consumption, and comfort as the metrics, along with the technical specifica-
tions for each vehicle. The site also provided guidance on pricing of each vehicle
and which vehicles provided the best value for the money.
After they narrowed down the choices, Bill and Sheila visited car dealerships.
They still had to decide if they would buy a new sedan or a used sedan, so they
went to both types of dealers. They also looked in the local newspaper for ads for

1
2 Procurement Project Management Success

both new and used vehicles. With ongoing conversations between each other, and
with their daughter, they decided to buy a new car. The major factors influenc-
ing their decision were safety, reliability, and value. With car loan interest rates
very low, and prices for new vehicles quite reasonable, they decided that this new
car would last their daughter at least through college and probably several more
years after that.
Still looking for the best possible value, Bill thought about a hybrid car. Sure
it would save on gas costs over the life of the vehicle, but what would that life be?
Five years? Ten years? More? What about repairing or replacing the batteries?
Bill decided to do research to find out about hybrids. Here is some of what he
found online:
Pros: great gas mileage (ranges from about 42 to over 60 miles per gallon);
very quiet while running on batteries; good reliability; good durabil-
ity; great braking; good interior style; smooth ride; good cargo capac-
ity; good power train performance
Cons: sluggish handling (steering); high price; slow acceleration; too quiet
(cannot hear engine running); not enough leg room; poor driving
position reduces visibility; not recommended for towing; high main-
tenance costs
With these findings, Bill talked with Sheila and Abby, and they all decided
to do test drives. The conflicting ratings of the quietness and power train perfor-
mance would be decided during the drives, as well as the driving position and
comfort level for Abby.
They decided to test drive a Toyota Prius first. At the dealership, there was
only one Prius available. All three went on the test drive, with Abby driving out
of the dealership. The salesman rode in the back seat and answered questions as
she drove. Bill and Sheila found the Prius to be very different from the vehicles
that they had driven all their lives. It was very quiet without the gas engine run-
ning. They had to agree with the online comments that the steering was less
responsive than they were used to, but Abby did not have any problems with it.
Secretly Sheila was very happy that the car did not have the pep that sports cars
have—Abby would be safer. When they arrived back at the dealership, the sales-
man invited them into his office to talk about the car.
Before they went to the dealership, all three had decided that they would do
the test drive only. They did not want to buy the car right now. There were other
cars to look at and test drive before their decision could be made.
Inside the dealership office, the salesman pointed out that there was only the
one Prius at the dealership. He said that they never kept a Prius on the lot for
more than two days, and this one had arrived the day before. No other dealers
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
 It is, however, a question of politics more than of trade, and the Nushki-
Nasratabad route is of less significance beside the political considerations which
attach to the future state of Seistan. In this way the importance of the latter is as
great as the value which attaches to Herat, because the occupation of Khorassan
by Russia would imply a dominating control of Seistan. Moreover, any movement
across Khorassan upon Seistan places the road to Kandahar from Herat, together
with the strategical points of Sabzawar and Farah, at the mercy of Russia, a
contingency which is certainly to be avoided in the present disordered condition of
our own house in Asia. Seistan is equally related to the strategic positions of Russia
in Central Asia and India, insomuch that if Russia were to become installed there
the obstacle to an advance upon India, which is presented by Afghanistan, would
have been surmounted and the road to the Gulf opened. Although she might not
make any actual forward movement from Seistan towards India, countless
opportunities would occur to her to foment disturbances among the Baluchi peoples
and to spread an actively hostile propaganda throughout the trans-frontier region.
Such a forward movement, too, an actual advance of 300 miles, would impose upon
the Government of India many additional outlays of money, besides keeping India in
a continuously unsettled and anxious state. It will be seen that the interests of
Russia and India in Seistan proceed on identical lines. If India were able to control
Outer Seistan an important position would be established from which she could
frustrate Russia’s designs along the Perso-Afghan border and in the direction of the
Persian Gulf. To do this it is not so much the interests of Seistan as our position in
Afghanistan and Persia which require to be considered. The advantage with respect
to Persia rests just now with the Russians, whose activity can only be countered
with effect by a permanent understanding with the Amir and the strengthening of
Persia in some enduring fashion. With Kandahar linked up by railway with India,
Afghanistan definitely united in arms with us, and Persia, freed from the wiles of
Russia, once more dependant upon us, our position along the Perso-Afghan border
would be endowed with such strength that the combination well might serve to
check any further Russian activities in the Middle East.
Note.—The names of the officers on the Seistan Mission were as follows:
Political.—Colonel A. H. (now Sir Henry) McMahon, K.C.I.E., C.S.I.; Capt.
Ramsay (Personal Assistant).
Irrigation Officer.—Mr. Ward, C.I.E.
Survey Officer.—Mr. Tate.
Infantry Escort.—Major H. F. Walters, 124th Baluchistan Infantry; Lieut. A. E.
Stewart, 124th Baluchistan Infantry; Lieut. Brett, 124th Baluchistan Infantry.
Cavalry Escort.—Lieut. C. P. Landon.
Commanding Camel Corps.—Capt. R. C. Bell, Central India Horse.
Doctor.—Major W. Irvine, I.M.S.
[20] The area of Seistan Proper is 3847 square miles.
[21] The area of Outer Seistan is 3159 square miles.
[22] Sir H. McMahon before the Royal Geographical Society. April 1906.
[23] “Sport and Politics under an Eastern Sky.” Earl of Ronaldshay.
[24] “On the Outskirts of Empire in Asia.” Earl of Ronaldshay.
[25] “Khurasan and Sistan.” Lieut.-Colonel C. E. Yate.
[26]The telegraph stations are Nushki, Mull, Dalbandin, Meroi, Mashki Chah,
Sainduk, Killa Robat.
[27] Telegraph stations.
[28] “The Middle Eastern Question.” Valentine Chirol.
 a caravan of pack-ponies

CHAPTER X

PROVINCES AND DISTRICT CENTRES, ETHNOGRAPHICAL

AND OROLOGICAL DISTRIBUTION
Afghanistan to-day is divided into five major provinces—Kabul, Herat, Kandahar,
Afghan Turkestan and Badakshan; and two territories—Kafiristan and Wakhan.
Kandahar includes Seistan and the basin of the Helmund; Herat the basin of the
Hari-Rud and north-western Afghanistan; Afghan Turkestan the former khanates
Andkhui, Maimana, Balkh and Khulm; the province of Badakshan administers the
territory of Wakhan and the regions of the Upper Oxus. Kabul, Herat and Kandahar
are the centres of their respective provinces; Tashkurgan and Mazar-i-Sharif of
Afghan Turkestan and Faizabad of Badakshan.
The province of Kabul is bounded on the north-west by the Koh-i-Baba, north by
the Hindu Kush, north-east by the Panjsher river and on the east by Jagdalik. In the
south its limits are defined by the Sufed Koh and Ghazni; to the west by the hill
country of the Hazaras, while its area of administration includes Bamian and
Haibak. The province is very mountainous, but it contains also a large portion of
arable lands which, lying along the base of the hills, derive much of their richness
from the off-scourings of the mountain faces.
Wheat and barley are the chief products, these grains constituting the staple food
of the poorest classes. Nonetheless, the crops are not sufficient for the needs of the
province and the demands of an inter-provincial export trade, which exists in a
flourishing condition. Cereals are imported from Ghazni and rice from Upper
Bangash, Jelalabad, Lughman and even Kunar. In bad years, when prices rule high,
corn is obtained from Bamian, which is also the chief centre for supplies of ghee.
The Hazara country and the Ghilzai region are active competitors with Bamian in
this trade. Agriculture and pastoral pursuits in the main attract the sole energies of
the countryside; the most important pasturage existing in Logar. Grass is plentiful in
the Kabul valley and also towards Ghorband, while agricultural development is
greatest in the Butkhak district. Water is abundant and every landowner devotes
considerable attention to fruit-culture. A large proportion of the population in the
Kabul province live in tents during the summer months. The villages are of various
sizes and usually number 150 families. As a rule the villages are not fortified; but
each contains a small guard-tower from where a watch is kept over the villages,
fields and flocks. Sheep are maintained for purposes of breeding, but bullocks,
camels, mules and horses are employed in transport—trading between Turkestan,
India and Khorassan. Bullocks are made use of within the precincts of the Kabul
valley; camels between Kabul province, Khorassan and Turkestan; mules and
ponies between the province and the Hazara country.
The province of Badakshan lies in the extreme east of Afghanistan. It is bounded
on the north and the east by the course of the Oxus, south by the crests of the
Hindu Kush as far as the junction of the Hindu Kush with the Mustagh and Sarikol
ranges, west by a line which crosses the Turkestan plain southwards from the
junction of the Kunduz river with the Oxus, from which point it proceeds ultimately to
strike the Hindu Kush. The principal sub-divisions of Badakshan are: on the west,
Rustak, Kataghan, Ghori, Narin and Anderab; on the north, Darwaz, Ragh and
Shiwa; on the east, Gharan, Ishkashim, Zebak and Wakhan; elsewhere, Faizabad,
Farkhar, Minjan and Kishm. Numerous lofty mountain ranges and deep rugged
valleys, wherein there is no little agricultural development, define its physiography,
while ethnographically the bulk of the people of the province are Tajik.
In winter the climate is severe, the mountain passes being blocked by snow and
the rivers frozen. In general it appears somewhat diversified and in the loftier parts
of the province the agricultural seasons are frequently ruined by early frost. The
chief industrial centres of the region are situated in the more temperate zones
where the valleys are sheltered by the orological development. The rain-fall, by
reason of the stimulating influence of the forests, is abundant, especially in March
and April. With the end of April a period of drought, continuing throughout May,
June, July and in a lesser degree in the months of August, September and October,
begins. Snow makes its appearance in November, but the heavier falls do not begin
until the middle of December.
 The principal industry of Badakshan is agricultural; but there is also considerable
mineral wealth, while salt deposits and sulphur mines are known to exist and in
some measure have been exploited. Salt and sulphur are found in the valley of the
Kokcha; iron exists near Faizabad, while the ruby mines, for which the province has
been celebrated, and the lapis-lazuli mines, are found respectively on the right bank
of the Oxus close to Ishkashim, in Gharan and near the sources of the Kokcha. The
ruby mines lie some 1200 feet above the Oxus river; but the deposits are not
worked regularly, although from time to time in the reign of Abdur Rahman projects
for developing them were initiated.

woman pounding grain

The alpine territory of Wakhan lies in the extreme north-east. It consists of two
upland valleys which are traversed by the Panja. These are hemmed in on either
side by lofty mountains; those to the south form the northern section of the Hindu
Kush here crossed by very difficult passes, the easiest of which is the Baroghil
(12,000 feet) leading to Chitral and Gilgit. The chief resources of the people are
derived from their flocks of sheep and droves of Tibetan yak. Wakhan is too
elevated and sterile for tillage, but it yields a pasturage like that of the Pamir region.
In this alpine district the lowest hamlet is 8000 feet; Sarhad, the highest, is no less
than 11,000 feet above the sea. Nevertheless, pulse and barley crops are grown in
the more sheltered glens.
 As a province Afghan Turkestan ranks among the most important in the State.
Before its division at the hands of Abdur Rahman it embraced much of the territory
which he apportioned to the province of Badakshan, including every important
khanate contained within the Oxus region. If now, when Afghanistan has been
reduced to order and a settled system of administration has given place to the
authority of the Khans, its revenues are less than others, its position is equal to
Herat and Kandahar. In importance it has ranked hitherto with the capital province
and contained the divisions of Maimana, Andkhui, Balkh and Khulm, together with a
number of so-called industrial centres, including Tashkurgan, a commercial market
and Mazar-i-Sharif. The limits of the province include the southern half of the Oxus
basin from the frontier of Badakshan on the east to the upper waters of the
Murghab on the west. The Oxus forms the northern border from the confluence of
the Kokcha river to Khwaja Sala. To the south it is contained by the high mountains
of the Hindu Kush, which form the dividing line of the country from east to west.
Quite lately Habib Ullah has proposed to re-distribute the various districts which
make up the provinces of Badakshan and Afghan Turkestan, so that two new
provinces may soon come into existence. These will have their headquarters at
Mazar-i-Sharif and Khanabad respectively. The first will consist of the districts of
Balkh, Akcha, Shibirghan, Andkhui and Tashkurgan, extending to the Oxus on the
north and Bamian on the south. The second will take in all the country eastwards to
Chitral, including Badakshan and Wakhan. Each province will have a Governor with
two Deputies. Sirdar Ghulam Ali Khan, brother of the Amir, will be Governor of one,
and another brother, Sirdar Omar Khan, will have his headquarters in the other. It is
intended at a later date to subdivide the provinces of Herat and Kandahar in similar
fashion, all the governors being of royal blood.
 a baluchi shepherd

The province of Herat extends, east and west, from near the sources of the Hari-
Rud to the Persian boundary beyond Ghorian, some 300 miles; and in length,
between its northern frontier and Seistan in the south, some 200 miles. As a whole
the region lacks any particular industrial or agricultural activity, its present
appearance suggesting that the unsettled conditions prevailing on its northern
frontiers have discouraged all efforts towards local development. Although it
contains such centres as Obeh and Sabzawar, besides places of less note, it is an
impoverished province and requires years of honest administration before it can
recover from the ill-effects of the abuses which have distinguished its existence.
Although the Herat province for a long time has been the seat of Afghan
government, sometimes in subordination to Kabul or upon occasion independent, it
has been, nevertheless, the object of constant attention from Persia. Since Ahmed
Shah Durani founded the Durani empire Herat has ranked as one of the three chief
cities of the country; and, even with the downfall of the dynasty which Ahmed Shah
established and his son Timur wrecked, it has contrived to play an interesting part in
the fortunes of the State, if not always an important one. But from the time when it
was incorporated in the Afghan kingdom by Dost Mahommed forty-three years ago,
it has experienced without any serious interruption the yoke of the Kabul
Government, until, freed from the menace of Persian aggression by British
intervention, it needs to-day only a period of equitable government to restore its
fortunes.
At the present date the province comprises between five and six hundred
villages, with some forty-five thousand households distributed over the centres of
Ghorian, Sabzawar, Farah Bakwa, Kurak, Obeh, Ghor and Kala Nao. In the days
when it formed a separate principality, many tribes, now lying within the Persian and
Russian boundaries, were allied in arms with Herat, the prestige of its reputation
enforcing a general recognition of its position and obedience to its behests. The old
order has now quite disappeared. With the advance of Russia to the northern
frontier of Afghanistan the independence of these roving peoples has been curtailed
and their love of war suppressed, the new arrangement depriving the former
khanate of no small proportion of its earlier glories. As a province of Afghanistan,
Herat is the headquarters of the Commander-in-Chief of the north-western frontier
and the seat of a provincial governor; it remains to be seen whether it becomes a
centre of industrial activity in connection with the army.
While it is impossible to define with absolute accuracy the various boundaries,
there is no doubt that in point of size the province of Kandahar is the most extensive
of any in Afghanistan. Although it has long ceased to be the seat of the supreme
government of the country, this province is second to none in the value of its
commercial importance, while its revenues have become an important factor in the
upkeep of the kingdom. The dimensions of its wide area extend from a few miles
south of Ghazni in the north-east to the Persian frontier and from the northern
extremity of the Hazara country to the Afghan-Baluch border. The district centres
which the province contains are Farah, Kelat-i-Ghilzai, Girishk, Laush, Khash,
Barakail and Afghan-Seistan. A division of interests marks the relations existing
between Kandahar and the Farah district which, although governed from Kandahar,
exercises complete jurisdiction over its own revenues. Excluding this source, the
local revenue, which is assessed in grain, returns a little short of a million rupees
annually, the customs and town duties of Kandahar city equalling the land revenues
of the entire province. Lying somewhat closer to Kabul than does Herat, Kandahar
has shared the fortunes of the capital city, revealing the effect in itself of any change
of rulers in Kabul. Nevertheless, while it has experienced certain intervals of
independence, Kandahar province unlike Herat province has not suffered from the
effects of continuous dynastic wars and the dread of Persian invasion. In general,
too, the tide of its disasters has flowed from India, British armies of occupation
having been in possession of its areas at various dates since Anglo-Indian arms
first supported the cause of Shah Shujah. The days of British intervention have
passed long since and the province, no less than the city, is now an integral part of
the Amir’s dominions.
 Photo, Olufsen

elders from wakhan

The division of Afghanistan into settled provinces is due to the initiative of Dost
Mahommed, the earliest movement in this direction being the despatch of an
expedition under Mahommed Akbar Khan, his son. This brought about the downfall
of the khanates in the regions south of the Oxus. Turkestan, including what is now
described as Badakshan, was not completely subjugated as the result of this
individual’s military activities. It was not until about 1866, when Shir Ali despatched
Mahommed Alum Khan to Balkh as Governor of that centre, that the operations
began which were to lead to the complete conquest by Afghan arms of all the
khanates contained within the Oxus region. Mahommed Alum Khan through his
general, Hafiz Ullah Khan, defeated Mahmud Shah the ruler of Badakshan. By this
victory the dependent states of Shignan, Roshan and Wakhan were occupied.
Subsequently, the annexation of Maimana rounded off the operations which, in the
first instance at the hands of Mahommed Akbar Khan and later at the instigation of
Mahommed Alum Khan, had brought about the extension of the Afghan dominions
to the banks of the Oxus and the Murghab. The conquered area was not to remain
long without a change in the fashion of its government; one of the earliest
administrative acts of Abdur Rahman was to split it up into two divisions—Afghan
Turkestan and Badakshan. With this improvement upon the previous condition of
their affairs, these troublous little hot-beds of anarchy and misrule were
extinguished, the areas being incorporated in one or other of the two provinces;
their former boundaries now represent the limits of the districts or counties into
which they were converted.
The chief of these khanates was that of Kunduz, presided over by a Mir and
covering 19,000 square miles. It was divided into three districts:
(1) Kunduz, with the sub-districts of Baglan, Ghori, Doshi, Killagai, Khinjan,
Anderab, Khost, Narin, Ishkashim, Khanabad, Tashkurgan, Haibak.
(2) Talikhan, with the sub-districts of Talikhan, Rustak, Chiab, Faizabad, Jarm,
Wakhan.
 (3) Hazrat Imam, with the sub-districts of Hazrat Imam, Siab, Kulab, Tapa,
Kurgan Yube, Kabadian, Muminabad.
Great changes have taken place in the territory which once belonged to Kunduz.
Kulab, Muminabad, Kabadian, have passed into the possession of Russia; while
Ghori, Narin, Kunduz, Baglan, Anderab, Rustak, Wakhan and Faizabad have been
shorn from its territories and handed over to the province of Badakshan for
administrative purposes. In the days when the Khan of Kunduz exercised
jurisdiction over a belt of country extending from the Wakhan valley to the Kunduz
river, the population was returned at 420,000 people, in the main composed of
Uzbegs and Tajiks. At that time, too, the district of Kunduz possessed 60,000
houses, that of Talikhan 25,000 houses, while in Hazrat Imam there were 20,000
houses. Kunduz, the former capital of this territory, has fallen from its high estate. It
is nowadays a mean and sparsely inhabited district; the little town itself contains
barely 1500 houses, the extreme unhealthiness of the region having caused the
residents of this former populous centre to abandon it. The place still boasts traces
of a fortress; and a wretched citadel, situated in its north-east corner, is the seat of a
petty official. Time has quite obscured the lines of the defences, and a dry ditch,
which once surrounded the work, is now laid out in fruit gardens or sown with
patches of corn.
West of Kunduz lay the Khanate of Khulm, now eclipsed by the more important
centre of Tashkurgan. In the days of its supremacy the Khulm territory included the
districts of Tashkurgan, Haibak and Khurram Sarbag. When the seat of local
government was removed from Khulm to Tashkurgan, the place lapsed into decay
and, now that Haibak has been brought under the direct administration of the Kabul
province, Tashkurgan has become the most important centre of what was once a
flourishing khanate. The town of Khulm stood out in the Oxus plain, surrounded by a
belt of very productive land. The irrigation of this district was highly developed; even
now there are numerous orchards and cultivated fields about the site of the ruined
city. The population has disappeared and barely 100 families remain on the
outskirts.
To the east of Kunduz, 15 miles distant, is Khanabad, the proposed centre of one
of the suggested new provinces. It is situated on the right bank of the Farkhan
branch of the Kunduz river. The population is dependent on traffic from Cis-Oxus
areas, although in recent years considerable local trade has sprung up. The town is
surrounded by high walls and lies on the brow of hills which overlook the Kunduz
region; it contains some 1500 households. In summer-time a far larger estimate
could be returned as its numbers fluctuate. A position of some military strength has
been made, and the fort, which is comparatively new, possesses strong mud walls,
18 feet in height. The Farkhan river, abreast of Khanabad, divides into two
channels: the western channel is 3 feet deep and 15 yards wide; the stream
possesses a rate of 5 miles an hour. The eastern channel is 60 yards wide and
flows immediately below the walls of the town.
 Tashkurgan, a cheerless group of villages enclosed by a mud wall, is the great
trade mart of Afghan-Turkestan and a distributing point for the merchandise which
caravans bring there from India and Bokhara. The wall, which is 3 miles in
circumference, is pierced by wooden gates, and the houses of the villages number
between 15,000 and 20,000. The population is subject to fluctuation. It falls as low
as 15,000 in the winter season, rising with great rapidity so soon as the opening of
the passes permits the resumption of trade relations with China, Russian Turkestan
and India. Each house is protected by an 8-foot high mud wall, which imparts a
dreary and monotonous appearance to the streets. The houses are built of clay and
sun-dried bricks, with one storey and a domed roof. As a rule, they stand amid a
profusion of fruit-trees; and, in the approach from the west, the town is lost in a
maze of fruit-gardens. The streets are straight and only of moderate breadth; they
intersect each other at right angles and down the centre of each there is an
irrigating channel. A branch of the Doaba river, increased by many rivulets, runs
through the town, but it is absorbed by the soil soon after it has passed Old Khulm.
Bazaars are held every Monday and Thursday and, in addition to the produce of
Bokhara and India, there is a considerable market in live-stock: horses, mules,
cows, sheep, goats and asses being assembled in their respective quarters for sale.
Cotton goods, cloth and silk-stuffs from India; tanned leather, raw cotton, hides, fuel
from Turkestan; grapes, raisins, pistacia nuts, pomegranates, dried plums from the
country-side; rock salt, Russian boots, indigenous dyes—as the pomegranate bark
and madder—and indigo imported from India, are exposed, together with chogas
from Chitral and raw wool from Badakshan. Printed chintzes, quilts and turbans are
also brought from Russian Turkestan; and coarse saddlery from Kabul is much in
request. One section of the bazaar is set aside for the sale of melons, which are
raised in great quantities in the neighbourhood.
The population is typical of a frontier region, and a sprinkling of natives from
every quarter of Central Asia may be found there. The Hindus act as money-lenders
and bankers, exacting an exorbitant usury; and other natives of India keep the drug
stores and the dye shops. The vendors of dried fruits are mostly from Kabul. The
trade with Yarkand is in the hands of Andijani merchants, who acquire the sheep
and furs of the Oxus territory in exchange, at Yarkand, for tea, which is disposed of
in Turkestan.
Fifty miles to the west of Khulm there is the beginning of what once was the
territory of Balkh, which draws its water from 18 canals fed from the Balkh river. To-
day the scene of the Mother of Cities reflects nothing but decay. The bazaar, simply
a covered street with a few shops in it, runs through the village. The combined
population of the district does not exceed 2000, including a small colony of Hindus
and about 70 Jews. Both these classes are shop-keepers and each is subject to a
capitation tax. The caste of the Hindus is shown by the usual painted marks upon
the forehead and the Jews wear a black sheepskin cap. The climate of Balkh is very
insalubrious, but the heat is temperate. In June the thermometer does not rise
above 80°, while July is the hottest month of the year. The crops do not ripen until
July, which makes the harvest fifty days later than Peshawar. The region is
unusually fertile. Indeed, the fruit of Balkh is most famous, and the apricots grow to
the size of apples. The soil is of a greyish colour, like pipe-clay and very rich. Within
the Balkh region water is distributed by means of aqueducts leading from the Balkh
river. The area of cultivation is not sufficient to exhaust the capacity of these canals,
their constant overflow accounting for the extreme unhealthiness of the place. Aside
from this peculiarity, the country is not naturally marshy. The district lies some 1800
feet above the level of the sea, about 6 miles from the hills on a gentle slope, which
sinks towards the Oxus. The waters of the Balkh river do not at the present day
reach the Oxus, the stream being consumed in the Balkh plain.
The spectacle of ruined Balkh, which at one time extended in a circuit of 20
miles, must recall Old Merv. Formerly it was surrounded by walls, some 6½ miles in
circumference. Nothing is left of these walls to-day but a mound of dried mud, worn
by the weather into all manner of desolate and fantastic shapes. The whole of the
northern half of the old city is one vast waste. Within the Akchah gate, three lofty
arches mark the remains of the Jumma Masjid and at the cross-roads there are the
foundations of the charsu. A little to the east of it there are two lofty gateways, the
remains of the main city gates—the western portion of the city having been added
subsequently. The southern and south-eastern portions stood upon a high mound
which resembled the position of Herat; but all the remainder, with the exception of
the old fort and citadel, was low and not more than 10 feet thick. The citadel, in its
south-west corner, stood some 50 feet higher still. The whole was surrounded by a
separate moat, rather narrow towards the city but with steeply-scarped sides.[29]
This citadel must now be nothing but a mound, the weather having obliterated even
the remnants found by Colonel C. E. Yate. To its north lay the fort, an empty, bare
place, surrounded by high walls and ruined bastions, with no signs of habitation
except the débris of a mass of low brick buildings at its southern end. It stood at a
considerable height above the level of its surroundings.
Between Khulm and Balkh, 9 miles east of Balkh and 26 miles from Khulm, is
Mazar-i-Sharif, situated on a canal drawn from the Balkh-ab and containing rather
more than 2000 households. It is held in the greatest veneration by Mahommedans
in general and especially by Shiahs, on account of the firm conviction that Hazrat Ali
was buried there. The tomb consists of two lofty cupolas which were built some 480
years ago. An annual fair is held, during which old and young, the blind, the infirm,
the halt and the maimed of many a distant region crowd to Mazar-i-Sharif and,
encamping round its shrine, plead day and night for the saint’s interposition on their
behalf. Where cures are effected, they are the result more usually of a change of air
and scene; but the greater portion of the faithful return as they came, bewailing their
want of belief and their sins, yet never questioning the potency of the shrine.
Mazar-i-Sharif is the summer resort of nearly the whole population of the Balkh
district, as its situation is more elevated, its temperature less oppressive and its air
less impure than that enjoyed by the Mother of Cities. In contrast with Balkh it is the
centre of a flourishing district, where the soil is rich, returning ample compensation
for any agricultural attention that it may receive. A large trade emanates from this
region, as, in addition to an extensive settled population, there are considerable
military establishments. The headquarters of these are located at Takht-a-Pul,
where Dost Mahommed was occupied for five years in constructing a fortified
cantonment, and Dehdadi. The former is protected by a broad deep moat and
enclosed within double walls 30 feet in height, pierced for musketry, bearing gun
towers and flanked by imposing bastions; the latter commands the road from the
Oxus and lies upon the summit of a high mountain overlooking Mazar-i-Sharif from
the south-west. Twelve years were spent upon the construction and equipment of
this frontier stronghold, and in the days of Abdur Rahman it was defended by an
assortment of guns, embracing Krupp field-pieces, naval quick-firers—such as
Nordenfeldt and Hotchkiss—and a number of maxims. The works are well protected
from gun-fire, and great pains have been taken to depress all epaulements to the
level of the mountain face.
Beyond Balkh the territories of a number of minor khanates began. Forty miles
west of Balkh there was Akcha, an Uzbeg khanate, while further west again there
were the areas of the four territories of Andkhui, Shibirghan, Saripul and Maimana.
The first and the last of these petty governments were the most important, the latter
preserving until lately a form of independence. Each of these little states has
experienced singular vicissitudes, fighting constantly among themselves,
occasionally uniting against the Afghans or the Amir of Bokhara. Andkhui,
particularly, has endured many reverses of fortune, since, lying upon the roads from
Herat, the Turcoman country and Bokhara, it has always been subject to attack. In
recent years it has enjoyed a period of peace, but even under existing conditions it
has not regained its earlier prosperity. At one time the khanate contained nearly
50,000 families, 13,000 living in the town. The population is a mixture of many
races—Tajiks, Uzbegs, Persians and Turcomans—whose religious convictions are
divided between the Shiah and Sunni sects in almost equal proportions.
Andkhui is situated on the Sangalak river, which, rising in the Band-i-Turkestan,
flows past Maimana to be lost in the desert before reaching the Oxus. The water of
the river is undrinkable; but it is used extensively for purposes of irrigation, and
imparts so much prosperity to the Andkhui district that a zone of cultivation extends
several miles round the city. Fruit, corn, rice and live-stock are raised in great
abundance; a bustling trade is conducted in black lambs’-skins with Persia, in
camels with the districts beyond the Oxus, in fruit and cereal products with inter-
provincial centres. The population now resident in the town has fallen from its
former high figure; it is estimated that there are only 3000 families within the walls.
The houses are all flat-roofed, low mud-buildings. The city walls are in ruins; the
bazaar and the fort are the sole points of interest in the place. The bazaar, which is
situated where four cross-roads meet, is insignificant. It lies in the centre of the town
and is roofed with matting. The market days are Sundays and Thursdays; but little
business at other times is transacted. Beyond the bazaar there is the fort—a high,
irregularly-shaped enclosure, some 250 yards or 300 yards in diameter. It is
occupied by a garrison consisting of one company from the regular regiments at
Maimana, three companies of Khasadars, two guns and 100 sowars, the latter force
being quartered beyond the walls on the northern face.
 The last of the little khanates, whose areas now compose the province of Afghan
Turkestan, is that of Maimana. This extends a distance of 18 miles in breadth and
20 miles in length. Besides the chief town it contains ten villages, of which the most
considerable are Kaisar, Kafarkala, Alvar and Khojakand. Maimana itself has
35,000 families. The population, divided into settlers and nomads, is estimated at
100,000 souls; in point of nationality they are for the most part Uzbegs of the tribes
of Min, Atchamali and Duz. There is a sprinkling of Tajiks, Heratis and a few Hindus,
Afghans and Jews. Hindus and Jews pay small capitation taxes. The town Maimana
is situated upon a plain in the midst of hills. It is surrounded by an earth-wall 12 feet
high, 5 feet thick and a ditch. It has towers at the angles and four gates. Its extent is
about 2 miles in circumference, but the place shows considerable neglect and
decay. The town is extremely filthy, and the bazaar is in a most dilapidated
condition. In it are three mosques and two schools, the former constructed of mud
and the latter of brick.
The revenue of the district is estimated at £20,000, but the taxes of the town are
levied by the local authorities as follows: one tithe on the produce of land, one tila
(Rs. 7) on each garden, 2½ per cent. on cattle, sheep, and merchandise, one-half
tila on each house, six tilas on each shop, one tila on the sales of horses or camels.
In addition to the tax on merchandise, transit duties are levied on every camel-load
of iron or other goods, while the Government also forms a close monopoly of alum,
nitre and sulphur.
In a sense the Hindu Kush is the dominant mountain system, together with that
extension which radiates from the Tirogkhoi plateau and the stupendous peaks of
the Koh-i-Baba. Everywhere the orology is of a very rugged and difficult nature and
its natural divisions may be said to be:
(1) The basin of the Kabul river, including its tributaries, the Logar, Panjsher and
Kunar rivers.
(2) The table-land valleys of the Ghilzai country from Ghazni to Kandahar,
including the Argandab, the Tarnak and the Arghesan.
(3) The tributary valleys of the Indus, viz., Kurram, Khost, Dawar, Gomul, Zobe
and Bori.
(4) The valley of the Helmund.
(5) The basin of the Hamun lake.
(6) The valley of the Hari Rud.
(7) The valley of the Murghab.
(8) The tributary valleys of the Oxus, viz., Maimana, Balkh, Khulm, Kunduz and
Kokcha rivers.
The general elevation of the country is considerable. Starting from the Koh-i-
Baba it slopes outwards and attains in the table-land of Ghazni and the upper
valleys of the Hari Rud, Helmund and Kabul rivers its highest points. Sloping
downwards towards its boundaries the waters of its rivers become absorbed by
irrigation or lost by evaporation. Except in its north-east corner, it grows more
desert-like in character and is bounded in all other directions, if not by a desert, at
least by a belt of “bad lands,” in which the work of cultivation and the march of
habitation is everywhere arrested by a want of water.
As opposed to the mountain system of Afghanistan there is very little plain.
Except between the foot of the northern slopes of the Hindu Kush and the Oxus, at
the foot of their south-western slopes along the lower courses of the Hari Rud, the
Farah and the Helmund, and the desert to the south of Kandahar, there is none.
Certain of the valleys have wide stretches of level, which, although they may not be
described as plains, are of such an open, undulating nature that they afford ample
space for cultivation. The water question is the great difficulty; although the number
of rivers in Afghanistan is considerable only the Helmund is of any magnitude.
Generally speaking, they are fordable everywhere during the greater part of the
year. Their volume, too, is greatly diminished by the irrigating channels, by which a
stream of some promise at its source rapidly dwindles away. The supplies that they
yield to cultivation make them of importance.
The following are the chief hydrographic divisions:
(1) The Kabul river and its tributaries.
(2) The Indus affluents.
(3) The basin of the Oxus.
(4) The basin of the Helmund.
(5) The basin of the Hari Rud.
 Photo, Olufsen

kasi khoda da of ishkashim

The prevailing climatic conditions of Afghanistan are dryness combined with

great extremes of temperature. Snow lies on the ground for three months during the
year in the Kabul and Ghazni districts, while many of the peaks from the Hindu
Kush to Kelat rise above the snow-line. But so much depends on elevation that
Jelalabad, 2000 feet above the sea, is scarcely colder than India, while the winters
on the neighbouring Kohistan uplands are as severe as those of Russia. The
coldest month of the year is February, the mean minimum being 17° F. and the
maximum 38° in the northern districts. The greatest cold is accompanied by an
extreme lowness of temperature; during the continuation of the cold wave, which
may remain for several days, the temperature varies from a mean of 12° below zero
to a maximum of 17° below freezing-point. In Kabul, where the snow lies upon the
ground for three months, the thermometer falls to 3° below zero and in Ghazni it
sinks to 10° below zero, with a daily maximum rise of 5°. The summer heat, on the
other hand, is everywhere high, especially in the Oxus region where a shade
maximum of 110° to 120° is usual. At Kabul (6500 feet) the glass rises to 90° and
100° in the shade, and in Kandahar to 110°. None the less, southern Afghanistan is,
on the whole, decidedly more salubrious than the fever-stricken lowland districts of
Afghan Turkestan.
 If such is an outline of the physical and climatic conditions of Afghanistan, the
ethnographic divisions no less require mention. In spite of the disappearance of the
khanates and the incorporation of their territories with Kabul, strong differences of
race still mark out the several peoples.
The subjoined table comprises the different tribes classified according to their
geographical distribution:[30]
Wakhis
Hindu Kush (northern slopes).
Badakhshis
Swatis
Galcha
Siah-Posh
Branch
Kafirs Hindu Kush (southern slopes).
Safis
Aryans. Chagnans
Kohistanis Hills north of Kabul.
Kabul; Suliman Mountains; Kandahar; Helmund
Afghans
Iranic basin; Herat.
Branch Tajiks Herat; most towns and settled districts.
Seistanis Lower Helmund. Hamun.
Indic Branch Hindkis Most large towns.
Mongol Hazaras
Northern highlands between Bamian and Herat.
Branch Aimaks
Mongol-
Uzbegs Afghan Turkestan.
Tatars. Turki
Turcomans Herat, Maimana and Andkhui.
Branch
Kizil Bashis Kabul chiefly.

The Afghans claim to be Ben-i-Israel, but since Ahmed Shah Durani announced
the independence of his state the Afghans of Afghanistan have styled themselves
Durani. They are settled principally in the Kandahar country, extending into Seistan
and to the borders of the Herat valley. Eastward they spread across the Afghan
border into the Toba highlands north of the Khojak, where they are represented by
Achakzai and Sadozai clans. They exist in the Kabul districts as Barakzai (the
Amir’s clan), and as Mahmundzai (Mohmands) and Yusufzai. They occupy the hills
north of the Kabul river, Bajaor, Swat, Buner and part of the Peshawar plains.
After the Afghans the dominant people are the Pukhtun or Pathans, represented
by a variety of tribes, many of whom are recognised as being of Indian origin. They
inhabit the hilly regions along the immediate British frontier. The Afridi Jowaki and
Orakzai clans hold the highlands immediately south of the Khyber and Peshawar,
the Turis of the Kurram, the Dawaris of Tochi and the Waziris of Waziristan filling up
the intervening Pathan hills north of the Gomul. In the Kohat district the Khattak and
Bangash clans are Pathan so that Pathans are found on both sides of the border.
The Ghilzai is reckoned as a Pathan, and he is also connected with the Afghan.
Nevertheless his origin is distinct; he claims only ties of faith and affinity of language
with other Afghan peoples. The Ghilzai rank collectively as second to none in
military strength and in commercial enterprise; further their chiefs take a leading
part in the politics of the country, possessing much influence at Kabul. They are a
fine, manly race of people, and it is from some of their most influential clans
(Suliman Khel, Nasir Khel, Kharotis, etc.) that the main body of Povindah merchants
is derived. These frontier commercial travellers trade between Ghazni and the
plains of India, bringing down their heavily-laden kafilas at the commencement of
the cold weather and retiring again to the hills ere the summer heat sets in. During
the winter months thousands of them circulate through the farthest districts of the
peninsula, where it not infrequently happens that they prove to be troublesome, if
not dangerous, visitors.
Underlying the predominant Afghan and Ghilzai elements in Afghan ethnography
there is the Tajik, who, representing the original Persian possessors of the soil, still
speaks his mother tongue. There are pure Persians in Afghanistan, such as the
Kizil Bashis of Kabul and the Naoshirwans of Kharan. The Tajiks are the cultivators
in the rural districts: the shop-keepers and clerks in the towns; while they are slaves
of the Pathan in Afghanistan no less than the Hindkis are in the plains of the Indus.
Next in importance to the Tajik is the Mongol Hazara, who speaks a dialect of
Persian and belongs to the Shiah sect of Mahommedans. The Hazaras occupy the
highlands of the upper Helmund valley, spreading through the country between
Kabul and Herat, as well as into a strip of territory on the frontier slopes of the Hindu
Kush. In the western provinces they are known as Hazaras, Jamshidis, Taimanis
and Ferozkhois; in other districts they are distinguished by the name of the territory
which they occupy. They are pure Mongols; intermixing with no other races,
preserving their language and their Mongol characteristics they are uninfluenced by
their surroundings.
In Afghan Turkestan the Tajik is allied with the Uzbeg and Turcoman; the chief
Turcoman tribes left to Afghan rule being the Alieli of the Daolatabad-Andkhui
districts and the Ersaris of the Khwaja Salar section of the Oxus frontier. Originally
robbers and raiders, they have now beaten their swords into ploughshares and
concern themselves with agricultural pursuits.
Thus while there is an Afghan race almost identical in physical type, speech,
religion and culture, there is none possessing a distinct sense of its unity, with
common political sentiments and aspirations. The Duranis, the Ghilzais, the Waziris,
the Afridis, the Mongols, Mohmands, Jusufzais and others form so many different
communities within the State. Each possesses separate interests, although Ahmed
Shah Durani endeavoured to give a national importance to his tribe, not only by
changing its name from Abdali to Durani, but also by associating with it other
sections—the Jusufzais, Mohmands, Afridis, Shinwaris, Orakzais and Turkolanis—
under the common designation of Bar-Duranis. The attempt failed, and these
sections still retain their tribal integrity, declining to be fused together; so that, while
the peoples of Afghanistan have lost their independence, it cannot be said that they
have not preserved their individuality.
 Photo, Olufsen

children from the upper oxus

Whatever the descent of the Afghans may be, the following, a list of the races
inhabiting Afghanistan at the present day, represents an endeavour to establish the
connections between them.
(1) The Durani tribes are:
1. Popalzai; 2. Alikuzai; 3. Barakzai; 4. Achakzai; 5. Nurzai; 6. Ishakzai; 7. Khugianis.
(2) The Tarins are divided into:
(a) The Spin Tarins.
(b) The Tor Tarins.
The Spin embrace:
1. Shadizai; 2. Marpani; 3. Lasran; 4. Adwani.
The Tor include:
1. Batezai; 2. Haikalzai; 3. Malizai; 4. Kadazai; 5. Khanizai; 6. Khamzai; 7. Alizai; 8.
Nurzai; 9. Kalazai; 10. Naezai; 11. Musizai; 12. Abdulrahmanzai; 13. Habilzai; 14.
Hamranzai; 15. Karbela; 16. Sezai.

(3) The Kakars are composed of:

1. Jalazai; 2. Musa Khel; 3. Kadizai; 4. Utman Khel; 5. Abdulazai; 6. Kabizai; 7. Hamzazai;
8. Shabozai; 9. Khidarzai.
(4) The Ghilzais control:
⎧ Zabr Khel Shahmomalzai.
⎪ Ahmadzai Kaisar Khel.
⎪ Umar Khel Khwazak.
Ibrahim
⎨ Adamzai Stanizai.
⎪ Chalozai Ali Khel.
⎩ Chinzai Andar.
⎧ Ohtaki.
Turan ⎨ Tokai.
⎩ Hotaki.
(5) The Povindahs comprise:
1. Lohani; 2. Nasir; 3. Nazai; 4. Kharoti.

(6) The Waziris are made up of:

1. Mahsud; 2. Utmanzai; 3. Ahmadzai.
(7) Shiranis.
(8) The Turis are broken up among:
1. Gundi Khel; 2. Alizai; 3. Mastu Khel; 4. Hamza Khel; 5. Dopazai.
(9) The Zaimukht are represented by:
1. Mamuzai; 2. Khwahdad Khel.
(10) Orakzais.
(11) Dawaris.
(12) Khostwals.
(13) The Afridis are split into:
1. Kaki Khel; 2. Malik Din; 3. Kambar; 4. Kamr; 5. Lakha Khel; 6. Aka Khel; 7. Sipahs.
(14) The Tajiks embody:
1. Kehwani; 2. Ada Khel; 3. Petla; 4. Ahman Khel; 5. Ali Khel; 6. Jamu Khel; 7. Husen
Khel; 8. Keria Ahmud Khel.
(15) The Mongols are formed of:
1. Miral Khel; 2. Khajuri; 3. Zab; 4. Margai; 5. Kamal Khel.
(16) Jadrans.
(17) The Shinwaris are constituted by:
1. Khoja Khel; 2. Shekhmal Khel; 3. Mirdad Khel; 4. Ashkben Khel; 5. Syad Khel; 6. Sangu
Khel.
(18) The Mohmands are indicated as:
1. Tarakzai; 2. Alamzai; 3. Baizai; 4. Khwaizai; 5. Utmanzai; 6. Dawezai.
(19) The Yusafzais (Kohistani) dissolve into:
1. Baizai; 2. Khwazozais; 3. Malizais; 4. Turkilanis; 5. Utmanzais; 6. Hasanzai; 7. Akazai;
8. Mada Khel; 9. Iliaszai; 10. Daolatzai; 11. Chagarzai; 12. Nurizai; 13. Utman Khels.